Roughly 40% of the food produced for human consumption in the United States is wasted annually. To put this into perspective, imagine buying a bag of ten apples and throwing 4 of them straight into the garbage. Now imagine doing that with 40% of everything (follow this link for more information on food waste in the United States).
Here are some simple steps you can take to be part of the solution to food waste. Find more at SavetheFood.com.
• Store your produce properly to extend its shelf life: print this chart for handy tips on food storage.
• When in doubt, freeze it! And portion out what you freeze into individual serving sizes so you don’t have to defrost more than you need at one time.
• Plan meals around what you have in the fridge already.
• Resist sales unless you know you will use or can freeze the items on sale (they’re not such a great deal if they end up in the waste bin!).
• Make a grocery list. Assess what you already have, write down what you need, and stick to the list when you get to the store so you don’t end up with excess.
Want to help save food within your community as well? Try gleaning – helping farmers clear the extra produce from their fields post-harvest. Depending on the event, the “rescued” food is either donated to charitable organizations and soup kitchens, or you get to take it home. Learn more and nd gleaning events near you at www.mainegleaningnetwork.org.
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